It seems only yesterday that I was in University rocking out to the albums Thirteen Tales from Urban Bohemia and Welcome the Monkey House. The Dandy Warhols were one of the biggest indie bands around in those days, fresh off a few massive hits, including the defining Bohemian Like You (still a dance floor staple at most indie clubs) and one of the better hand clap songs out there (We Used to be Friends). It seemed like the world was full of possibilities.

It’s now been a decade since that time, and the Dandy’s are still at it. They never quite reach the levels that most people would have projected for them in their hey days, but they are still here, plugging away at it. Their latest album, The Machine was released in April and appears to be a less electronic heavy album than their previous effort Earth to the Dandy Warhols.

Luckily, you can get a taste of all of the Dandy’s discography when they come to town on June 3rd. Courtesy of Live Nation, we have a pair of tickets to give away. To enter, do one of the following.

1) Like us on Facebook and comment on our post about it.
2) Follow us on Twitter(@panicmanual) and retweet this post.
3) Email panic@panicmanual.com with the subject “Not if you were the last contest on earth! / Dandy Warhols” and your full name in the body
4) Legally change your last name so that there’s a duplicate of it. So John Smith Smith, for example.

Other relevant tour dates

5/17 – The Wiltern – Los Angeles, CA
5/19 – Belly Up – Solana Beach, CA
5/20 – The Roxy Lounge – Scottsdale, AZ
5/22 – Emo’s East – Austin, TX
5/23 – House of Blues – Dallas, TX
5/25 – The Masquerade – Atlanta, GA
5/26 – The Fillmore Charlotte – Charlotte, NC
5/27 – The Orange Peel – Asheville, NC
5/29 – 9:30 Club – Washington, DC
5/30 – Trocadero – Philadelphia, PA
6/01 – Royale Nightclub – Boston, MA
6/02 – Corona Theatre – Montréal, QC
6/03 – Phoenix Concert Theatre – Toronto, ON
6/05 – Irving Plaza – New York, NY
6/06 – Bell House – Brooklyn, NY
6/08 – Royal Oak Music Theatre – Royal Oak, MI
6/09 – Grog Shop – Cleveland, OH
6/10 – Metro – Chicago, IL
6/12 – Gothic Theater – Englewood, CO
6/13 – Belly Up – Aspen, CO
6/15 – Commodore Ballroom – Vancouver, BC
6/16 – Doug Fir – Portland, OR
6/17 – Showbox Market – Seattle, WA

So remember the Lilith Fair? A monumental, epic, crunchy-granola, feel-good testament to all that is feminine? Good news if you do remember: You have great taste in female artists. Good news if you don’t remember: Amanda Mair can provide a cheat-sheet to all the Lilith Fair awesomeness you have been deprived of.

Amanda Mair, first of all, is a baby (aka born 1994 – don’t think about it – it’ll only hurt your soul). The Swedish singer has a beautiful, clear, natural voice that neither grates nor wears on listeners. I could literally listen to her all day. More good news: her debut, self-titled album will be available June 5, 2012.

Most of her music on the album is laid-back – easy listening but distinctive enough not to become boring. There are some poppy undertones (try “Doubt”) – as well as some richer (almost soulful?) sounds on tracks like “Sense.” My personal favorite is “Skinnarviksberget” which makes me think of every prince-and-princess-falling-in-love moment from all our favorite Disney movie classics.

So: Feminists, Scandinavian-philes, Disney-lovers, children of the 90s, unite (if you don’t fall into one of those categories, you need to seriously reassess your interests)! Spread the word of Amanda Mair. She’s definitely worth a listen.

Making every feminist cringe with its band name since 2007, Cheap Girls has also been making its fans smile for the past 5 years. The all-male trio (including two brothers – shout out to siblings!) hails from Michigan and produces a sound evocative of 90s garage punk – and we mean that only in the best of ways. The band’s latest record, Giant Orange, has several gems, including “Ruby” “On-Off” and “Cored to the Empty.” Although the band names a glow-in-the-dark arcade/mini golf course serving a vegan pot luck the ‘weirdest’ venue they’ve ever frequented, we’re sure this upcoming tour will produce comparable superlatives of awesomeness. To win tickets and experience it yourself, do one of the following three things:

1) Like us on Facebook and comment on our contest post
2) Follow us on twitter (@panicmanual) and retweet this post.
3) Email panic@panicmanual.com with the subject “Women Should Actually be Valued by their Male Counterparts for Real Though.”
4) Vote for your favorite sibling duo amongst the Panic Manual writers (hint: there’s only one pair).

Tristen puts on a pretty good show.  Not being overly familiar with the Nashville based musician’s work, I went into the show pretty much blind and walked away impressed.  She’s got a good voice that really shines through in her catchy, upbeat folk pop tunes.  She’s touring behind her latest, Charlatans At The Garden Gate, which has received accolades from publications such as Spin, Paste, and American Songwriter, and which her press release describes as “hooky guitar pop that blends country, rockabilly, rock’n'roll, girl group sounds and introspective balladry.”  Yup, that sounds about right to me.  She’s got a likeable presence on stage and seemed to make a good impression on the crowd.  The crowd apparently made a good impression on her too, as she later remarked on Twitter, “ Toronto! We love you and your funny money – thanks for the love.”

I was considerably more familiar with the work of headliner Justin Townes Earle, though I’m still working on digesting 2012′s Harlem River Blues and haven’t yet given Nothing’s Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now a listen.  From what I could tell, nothing off the new album seems like a radical departure for Earle, though one change was apparent: this was my first time seeing Earle backed up by a full band.  Truthfully, I feel like I kind of prefer seeing him as more of a solo act, though it did sound good with a fuller sound and Earle, as usual, put on a good show.  And I suppose if you’re making the move from The Horseshoe (where he played last time he was in town) to The Opera House, you’ve got to step up your game a bit. Well done, Justin Townes Earle.  Now I guess I’d better go listen to that new album.

I love synth. I love the 80’s. I love new wave. I love men that can rock a polka dot collared shirt and look phenomenal in it. I love dancing. In short, I loved Neon Indian at the Phoenix on Tuesday, May 8th. II missed the first act Silent Diane, but after extensively watching online live YouTube videos I can tell you that they are an electronic duo, with that low-fi electro pop sound.

Lemonade, formerly San Franciscoans, now Brooklynites, played before Neon Indian, bringing their electronic sound with influences ranging from carribean, top 40, pop, to house. Their debut album received an 8.3 on Pitchfork, which to some, may mean “yea it’s worth a listen”, to others who care less for Pitchfork’s opinion, may mean it is pretentious drivel. I quite like their recordings, as any music fan can appreciate the wide range of influences that peek out in each song. It adds variety instead of listening to slight variations of the same song. However, their sound didn’t translate so well live. It could be that they were playing a venue too large for their sound as of yet, or the fact that the sound guy seemed to be nowhere in sight, only mic’ed the snare drum properly, you couldn’t hear the vocals, dude didn’t turn them up etc. The lead singer looked a bit out of place, only slightly swaying and sometimes moving his arms. Kudos to drummer Alex Pasternak though, Pasternak was a one man show, literally bouncing from foot to foot as he carried the insanely quick tempo throughout every song. Pasternak’s enthusiastic stage presence and the glow in the dark fluorescent pink drumsticks were definitely worth watching.

Alan Palomo has come a long way since his debut album Psychic Chasms. His stage presence has increased tenfold, with Palomo showing off some killer dance moves, added members to his live sets, as well as a Tron inspired lighting set up. When Neon Indian took the stage, to the largest venue they’ve headlined in Toronto as of yet, the crowd was going mad with anticipation. They kicked off their generous set with Local Joke, and it was a dance party from the start. Ripping through a perfect mix of both albums, he had the crowd genuinely cheering for more (not that half hearted “we know they’re coming back” cheer). They finished off with Terminally Chill and Should’ve taken Acid With You, two of the best songs off Psychic Chasms. Glad to have seen them at small and moderate sized venues, I predict Sound Academy and Kool Haus in their futures.

There’s little better than efficient creativity – and Battles has that combination down. The rock group blew listeners away with its first album, Mirrored, in 2007. Shortly after came Gloss Drop – and now (enter the efficient creativity component) – welcome Dross Glop. The band’s latest creation is unique, yet capitalizes on the second album’s tracks by remixing all of its original tracks via guest remixers including The Field, Kode9, and Qluster.

The result? Awesomeness.

My favorite track on the new album is probably Ice Cream from Dross Glop 4 (the album was released as a four-part 12” series), remixed by Brian DeGraw of Gang Gang Dance. The tempo is varied, the vocals are a fun ingredient in the mix, and the tune will have you twitching, if not full out dancing, well before its 4:07 run is over.

It’s worth checking out all the tracks on this compilation – and the artwork besides (which is another efficiently creative masterpiece: the artists have taken Gloss Drop’s original cover art and spattered it with different hues – another very cool ‘remix.’)

This band has definitely made its mark and continues to do so. They’re on the go so check them out when they’re nearest to you.

6/2 – Chicago, IL @ The Bottom Lounge
6/3 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
6/4 – Millvale, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre
6/5 – Columbus, OH @ Outland Live
6/6 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogarts
6/7 – Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall
6/9 – Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo
6/10 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
6/11 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat
6/12 – Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of Living Arts
6/23 – Denver, CO @ Westword Music Showcase

Celebrated singer-songwriter Ron Sexsmith has had a long career, been praised by luminaries like Paul McCartney and Elvis Costello, been covered by the likes of Feist, Emmylou Harris, and Rod Stewart (though in my opinion, you can skip Rod’s version of “Secret Heart”).  Not too shabby.  His latest, Long Player Late Bloomer was produced by Bob Rock, yet sadly does not sound like Metallica and Bon Jovi.  Maybe next time. 

Sexsmith is playing The Queen Elizabeth Theatre on May 17 and we have a pair of tickets to give away to you.  Yes, you.  Here’s how (do 1 of the following):

1) Like us on Facebook and comment on the post that accompanies this one.

2) Follow us on twitter (@panicmanual) and retweet this post.

3) Send an email to panic@panicmanual.com with the subject “I want your Sexsmith”

4) Get Chris Martin to sing backup on a song you wrote.

Jack White is a man that needs no introduction.

He’s one of the most iconic rock stars that have emerged in the past decade and has achieved some significant things in our time. It’s safe to say Jack White sounds like nobody and nobody sounds like Jack White. That’s quite the distinction.

Blunderbuss is the first solo effort from Jack White and it’s a fantastic record. It was released in late April and if you haven’t already got it (or want a duplicate copy) then we have a pleasant contest for you!

For all our Canadian friends, we have some Jack White albums to give away (in compact disc format).

To win, do one of the following:

1) Like us on Facebook and comment on our eventual posting of this
2) Follow us on twitter (@panicmanual) and retweet this post.
3) Send an email to panic@panicmanual.com with the subject “I want some love interruption”
4) Marry a girl and then say she’s your sister for a better part of a decade.

This was one of the most interesting sounds that I have ever heard, and not in a good way. Honhee Honhee is a band from Montreal. They occasionally go on vacations elsewhere. They only have one album, Shouts, so far.

I honestly think that this was one of the most horrible and ear ringing sounds that I have ever heard other than my big brother singing in the shower. In some/most songs you can hardly tell what they are singing but you would have probably already turned it off because it is such a bad album. To me most of the things that they are saying sounds like a muffled blah, blah, blah.

This music reminds me of when I got my second cat and when we let her out of the cage. She started to meow like crazy and when we lifted her up she made this even worse sound. This album reminds me of that sound. This music is hard to compare to anything else that I actually like because the music that I like is either a little slower or a lot faster like rap music.

They have a very unique sound that people can either hate or love, and I hate it, but my other older brother loves it. I think that the reason that I don’t like the music and my brother does is because me and my brother are nothing alike and we also have different tastes in music. He likes more techno sort of things and I like more rap/hip hop stuff. That is just my opinion and the other people who might listen to this album might love it or hate it.

On this album I would say that only about 2 out of the 8 songs are not that half bad but still not good enough to have me listen to them every day. The two songs that aren’t half bad are: A Is For Animal, and To The Silo. The songs are as bad as I am saying they are. I have some advice for the people in this band. FIND A NEW CAREER CHOICE!

My rating for this album is 2/10 or 2 thumbs up. I would have given it a worse rating but I did somewhat like the two songs that I was telling you about. – HS

 Nikki Lane is the real deal.  In her set opening for Spiritualized, the South Carolina retro  country singer proved herself to be no pretender, but a real devotee to the sounds and attitude associated with the outlaw country scene of the past.  Case in point: while introducing her cover of Jessi Colter’s “Why You Been Gone So Long,” she asked if the crowd knew of Colter – “You know, Waylon Jennings’ wife?”  With that, she lifted up her sleeve to reveal a Waylon tattoo.  Later in her set, she uttered a phrase that cemented my opinion of her: “I spilled whiskey on my pedals.”  A whiskey drinking, Waylon loving woman with a strong voice that’s been compared to that of Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette? Seems like the real deal to me. Playing a solo acoustic set, she announced that it was something she normally never does, but that she agreed to because Spiritualized offered her the spot on this condition and that she, being a fan, was not about to say no to J. Spaceman.  While I’d be keen on seeing her with a full band, I’ve got to say her songs work quite well in the stripped down format.  She might want to consider doing this more often.

Jason Pierce is also the real deal, in that the Spiritualized mastermind is always true to his vision.  A Spritualized record is going to sound like a Spiritualized record, even when he makes a conscious effort to make a more “pop” album, as he did with their latest, Sweet Heart Sweet Light.  And a Spiritualized show is going to sound like a Spiritualized show.  That is, loud, epic, spacey … if you’ve been to one of their shows you know what I’m talking about.  The band’s trademark blend of psychedelia, gospel, and rock’n'roll attitude works well and sounds great live.  Pierce didn’t really say much or even move much from the spot he was standing on, but he didn’t really have to.  The music speaks for itself.

Speaking of speaking for yourself, I feel the need to go on another rant about concert behaviour that annoys me.  Now I’m really not one to begrudge someone if they’re enjoying a concert, but the guy who was standing next to me for a few songs might want to tone it down a notch.  During the band’s performance of “Lay Back In The Sun,” this guy shouted out what I feel were a few too many “woo’s” throughout the song.  Look, I get that you approve of the line “Good dope, good fun,” but really I think one “woo” for the first time you hear that is sufficient.  Any more than that and you’re veering into concert douchebag territory.  Also, stop yelling out “DO IT!” while the band is jamming.  Do what?  They’re already doing it and doing it well. What more do you want?